The world’s foremost all-male comic ballet company is back!

I often speak about the big Broadway tours because GED covers the whole state, and those tours do too. The big commercial theatres where those tours play rarely produce their own shows. However, there is a whole genre of companies known as regional theatres. Broadly, that is any professional company outside of New York City, but usually the term is applied to companies that produce quality productions of classics and new works. I’ve listed a few of my favorites throughout the state, and why I like them:

PASADENA PLAYHOUSE, deemed California’s State Theatre, is at their absolute best when they re-invent musicals such as Camelot, Can-Can, Little Shop of Horrors, and the recent (and incredible) Head Over Heels.  It’s a surprisingly small theatre so book early, but their tickets are more reasonable than the larger houses.

SOUTH COAST REPERTORY (SCR), located in Costa Mesa across from South Coast Plaza, this company traces its roots to the experimental theatre movement of the late 60’s. They started with 75 seats and volunteers, and now operate as a very stylish two-theatre complex adjacent to the Segerstrom Center. They present a combination of classics and premieres, and they produce both with amazing acting and production details.

BERKELEY REPERTORY, founded in 1968 as the East Bay’s first professional theatre, produces a very full season with a mixture of modern classics and many world premieres. Among their numerous premieres are Green Day’s American Idiot and Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations, the latter still playing on Broadway.

AMERICAN CONSERVATORY THEATRE (ACT), in downtown San Francisco, sees its mission as bringing communities and artists together to inspire and provoke. Although they have historically produced many classics, their current choices are much more edgy. Presented downtown at the classic Curran Theatre, I think the modern, more experimental work should make a great combination with the venerable venue.

THE OLD GLOBE THEATRE, located in the middle of San Diego’s beautiful Balboa Park, is one of my favorite theatres anywhere. Like the others, they combine a few classics with premieres, and worked on the development of Hairspray, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The First Wives Club, and many others. Their “large” theatre seats fewer than 700 guests. They also have a smaller, more experimental stage, and best of all is their outdoor Festival Theatre where they produce world quality Shakespeare productions each summer. Strolling through the massive Balboa Park on a summer’s evening, followed by some amazingly accessible Shakespeare under the night sky is magic.

LA JOLLA PLAYHOUSE is where audiences and artists come together to create what is new and next in American Theatre. They have originated more Broadway shows than any other California theatre company (don’t judge them based on Diana: The Musical). Their next premiere is Bhanging It, scheduled to run March 8 to April 17, 2022.

EVERYBODY’S TALKING ABOUT JAMIE:  I wrote about this show a couple of months ago to give you a chance to buy the best tickets. Hope you did just that because it looks like most performances are quite full. Based on the British documentary, Jamie: Drag Queen at 16, it has been adapted as a rock musical and playing very successfully in London for a couple of years. The current West End stars, Layton Williams as Jamie, and Roy Blaylock as his drag mentor, will fly to Los Angeles for this production.  Oh, in case you didn’t recognize the name, Roy Blaylock appears both as a man and as his drag persona, Bianca Del Rio!  Have I got your interest now? Playing at Los Angeles’s Ahmanson Theatre January 16 – February 20. www.centertheatregroup.org

LES BALLETS TROCADERO DE MONTE CARLO:  The world’s foremost all-male comic ballet company is making a brief sweep through our state this month and they are worth checking out. Started in 1974 in the wake of the Stonewall riots, the company began when several trained ballet dancers donned drag make-up and costumes to present a series of shows at the LGBTQ center. Since that time, they have grown to international recognition, and the troupe spends much of the year traveling around the world. Note that even though they describe themselves as comics, their dancing is world class, and not just a bunch of queens donning tutus and leaping around. Their California dates are Long Beach’s Carpenter Center January 29-30; Palm Desert’s McCallum Theatre January 31; and Berkeley’s Cal Performances February 4-5.